Leadership Development
Strong leadership is essential for the success of any nonprofit organization, and never more so than when innovation and change is necessary.
And GEO members agree. More than three-quarters of GEO member organizations surveyed assess grantee leadership as part of their due diligence process, and nearly two-thirds directly support the leadership development of grantees, either through funding or directly through their grantmaking organizations.
Through its many activities, GEO encourages new models for investing in leadership, supports leader transitions and explores collaborative leadership models.
Recommended Resources
Introducing GEO case studies:
The best learning occurs when peers teach peers, especially in a field as unique as philanthropy.
GEO Case Studies are designed to help you learn from other grantmakers; by understanding their best practices and also recognizing where they may have gone wrong. See our latest case study on The Bank of America Charitable Foundation’s Neighborhood Builders® Award.
The Bank of America Charitable Foundation’s Neighborhood Builders® Award provides nonprofits with a unique combination of support, each selected organization sends one executive director and one emerging leader to attend a year-long leadership and management training program, and the organization receives a $200,000 general operating grant over two years. Grantees are selected through local committees in communities served by the bank, a total of 92 awardees each year with more than 400 organizations participating in the program to date. Learn more and download GEO’s full in-depth case study on the program here.
+ download PDF
The Hawai’i Community Foundation’s Promoting Outstanding Nonprofit Organizations (PONO) program
The PONO program brings mid-career nonprofit executives together for a year-long program of learning. The program offers participants the opportunity to design and implement capacity-building projects that focus on a critical issue or entrepreneurial opportunity facing their organizations. + download PDF
Advisors
The following individuals provide guidance and oversight to GEO's Leadership Development work: